DAILY G.K. MARCH 2016 -- 201 TO 250

201. RBI
Likely To Pay Rs 57,000 Cr. In Dividends To Government in 2016-17

i. The Reserve Bank of India
is likely to pay the government Rs 57,000 crore in dividends in 2016-17,
slightly less than the amount it paid in the current fiscal but much higher
than that in earlier years.

ii. The amount paid is slightly
lesser than the previous fiscal year but much higher than the previous years
Last year, the government received Rs.73,905 crores as dividends from various
state owned banks and the RBI.

iii. This fiscal year it has
estimated to receive Rs.69,897 crores.

202. 14
Indian Investors Among World’s Top 100 Venture Capitalists

i. A total of fourteen Indian
investors have been featured in a list of top 100 venture capitalists in the
world.

ii. The list has been compiled
by CB Insights, a research firm that tracks angel and venture capital
investments across the globe.

iii. The list has been
prepared based on evaluations of the basis of the investments made by the
investors since 2008.

iv. The investors were
evaluated based on factors such as investor exits and consistency of
investments among others.

203. RUSA
Scheme to be implemented to improve Equity, Quality of Higher Education

i. Central government is
implementing the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha
Abhiyan (RUSA) for providing financial support to proposals contained in State
Higher Education Plan (SHEP) approved by the State Higher Education Councils
(SHECs) in order to achieve the objectives of equity, access and quality.

ii. A total of 115
Universities and 1218 colleges have been approved by RUSA PAB for
infrastructure grants.

iii. These approvals were
accorded to the proposals included in the respective State Higher Education
Plans (SHEPs).

iv. objectives of Rashtriya
Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA)- Ensure adequate availability of quality
faculty in all higher educational institutions and ensure capacity building at
all levels. To achieve the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) target of 25.2% by the
end of 12th Plan and 32% by the end of 13th Plan.

v. Only seven proposals from
the states under the component of creation of universities through upgradation
of autonomous colleges and eight proposals of states under the component of
creation of universities through clustering of colleges have been approved by
the PAB of RUSA as other proposals could not meet the prescribed norms.

204. Over
Rs 1 lakh crore disbursed under MUDRA Yojana

i. Under Pradhan Mantri Mudra
Yojana Loans worth Rs1.09 lakh crore have been sanctioned to small
entrepreneurs, loans worth over Rs.1.09 lakh crore were given to over 2.96
crore beneficiaries.

ii. According to Minister of
State for Finance Jayant Sinha loans worth over Rs 1.09 lakh crore were given
to over 2.96 crore beneficiaries.

iii. Under Pradhan Mantri
MUDRA Yojana, which was launched in April last year, loans between Rs 50,000
and Rs 10 lakh are provided to small entrepreneurs.

iv. Pradhan Mantri Mudra
Yojana under the Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank is a
new institution being set up by Government of India for development and
refinancing activities relating to micro units.

v. It was announced by the
Finance Minister while presenting the Union Budget for FY 2016. The purpose of
MUDRA is to provide funding to the non corporate small business sector. MUDRA
Yojana, which was launched in April last year, loans between Rs.50, 000 and
Rs.10 lakh are provided to small entrepreneurs. The Micro Units Development and
Refinance Agency Ltd (MUDRA) focuses on the 5.75 crore self-employed who have
deployed funds totalling Rs.11 lakh crore and provide jobs to 12 crore people.

i. Jammu& Kashmir
(J&K) became the 9th state to sign the memorandum of understanding(MoU) for
power distribution reforms, the Ujwal Discoms Assurance Yojana (UDAY).

ii. It’s a tripartite
agreement between the Union Ministry of Power, state governments and the
discoms.

iii. The other eight states
are Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana
and Punjab.

iv. An overall net benefit of
approximately Rs 9,800 crore would accrue to J&K by opting to participate
in UDAY, by way of savings in interest cost, reduction in aggregate technical
and commercial (AT&C) and transmission losses, interventions in energy
efficiency, and coal reforms, said the officials.

v. The Union Cabinet chaired
by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi announced scheme moved
by the Ministry of Power - Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojna or UDAY. UDAY provides
for the financial turnaround and revival of Power Distribution companies
(DISCOMs), and importantly also ensures a sustainable permanent solution to the
problem. UDAY is a path breaking reform for realizing the Hon’ble Prime
Minister’s vision of affordable and accessible 24x7 Power for All.

206. Bharti
Airtel buys Videocon Telecom for Rs 4,428 cr.

i. India’s largest telecom
operator by subcriber base, Bharti Airtel, said on Thursday that it has
acquired Videocon Telecom for Rs 4,428 crore.

ii. With this, Bharti Airtel
will get the rights to use 2X5 MHz of spectrum in the 1800 band allocated to
Videocon by the government on April 5, 2013.

iii. On March 16, Idea
Cellular had terminated its spectrum deal with Videocon under which it was
supposed to buy two circles - Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (West) - for Rs 3,310
crore. After this deal, Bharti’s 4G coverage is likely to go up to 19 circles
from the current 15.

207. India
aviation show 2016 begins in Hyderabad

i. The India Aviation 2016, an
international exhibition and conference on civil aviation kicked off in
Hyderabad, Telangana.

ii. It is the fifth edition in
the biennial series of this international exhibition and was inaugurated by
President Pranab Mukherjee at the Begumpet Airport (also known as Hyderabad Old
Airport).

iii. India Aviation 2016 has
been jointly organised by Ministry of Civil Aviation and Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) on the lines of Make in India.

iv. More than 200 major
participants across the globe are going to part and will be displaying latest
aircrafts. Delegations led by Ministers and Senior Government Officials from
more than 25 are going to participate in the event. It will also see the
participation of leading Aircraft Manufacturers, helicopter manufacturers and engine
manufacturers.

v. Global CEO’s at CEO Forum
will be also held in the four day event. Major global aviation infrastructure
companies are also participating in this event.

208.
Actress Michelle Yeoh Appointed As UNDP Goodwill Ambassador

i. Michelle Yeoh, the award
winning action heroine has been appointed as United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) Goodwill Ambassador.

ii. The UNDP works to
eradicate poverty and reduce inequality.

iii. The Malaysian born
actress will focus on raising awareness and mobilising support for the recently
launched Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

iv. The actress is
internationally acclaimed for her roles in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never
Dies. she was chosen by People as one of the “50 Most Beautiful People in the
World” in 1997. She was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in 2000
for her movie Hidden Dragon.

v. Prior to this, Her
engagements concern development issues which included appointments as Global
Ambassador for the Live to Love and Make Roads Safe campaign in 2012 and
advocacy during the Zero Discrimination Campaign in 2013.

209.
Shehnai Exponent Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan Has Passed Away

i. Famous Shehnai exponent
Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan has passed away in Kolkata, West Bengal. He was
77. He was suffering from kidney related problem and hospitalized from
the past few days.

ii. He was one of the best
players of the instrument after the legendary Bismillah Khan.

iii. He was born in 1939 and
represented the Benaras gharana (school) in shehnai music. He was famously
known for his innovative style and mastery over the classical and
semi-classical and folk. He also used to teach in the Kolkata based ITC Sangeet
Research Academy.

iv. He had played Shehnai at
the inauguration ceremony of Doordarshan television channel in 1973 with Pandit
Ravi Shankar and also had rendered its signature tune. He was a top graded
artiste of All India Radio (AIR). He had performed globally.

v. He was awarded with the
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2009 and Bangabhushan award in 2012 of West
Bengal government etc.

210. Paul
Daniels, TV Magician, Dies Aged 77

i. Television magician Paul
Daniels has died aged 77 after being diagnosed with a brain tumor.

ii. The entertainer was
diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor in February and last
week returned from hospital to spend his “final days” at home.

iii. Daniels is famed for his
television series The Paul Daniels Magic Show, which ran on the BBC from 1979
to 1994. He was born in 1938 in South Bank, Middlesbrough, where he began his
career as a magician and entertainer.

iv. Newton Edward Daniels,
known by his stage name Paul Daniels, was an English magician and television
performer.

v. He achieved international
fame through his television series The Paul Daniels Magic Show, which ran on
the BBC from 1979 to 1994.

211. FIFA
admits taking bribe for hosting World Cup

i. FIFA is seeking to claim
“tens of millions of dollars” in bribe money seized by U.S. federal
prosecutors.

ii. FIFA submitted a 22-page
claim to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York that seeks a big share in
restitution from more than $190 million already forfeited by soccer and
marketing officials who pleaded guilty in the sprawling corruption case.

iii. Tens of millions of
dollars more is likely to be collected by U.S. authorities when sentences are
handed down, and from dozens of officials currently indicted but who have
denied bribery charges or are fighting extradition.

iv. FIFA claims it is the
victim of corrupt individuals, despite widespread criticism that bribe-taking
was embedded in its culture in the presidencies of Joao Havelange and Sepp
Blatter, who was forced from office after 17 years by the current scandal.

i. The United Nations (UN) has
suspended Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova as Goodwill Ambassador of the
organisation after she was tested positive on doping allegations.

ii. She was suspended by New
York based UN Development Programme (UNDP) until the outcome of the
investigation into her case is known.

iii. However, UNDP has
mentioned that they are grateful to Maria Sharapova for her support to their
work, especially around the Chernobyl nuclear disaster recovery.

iv. Earlier in March 2016, the
five times Grand Slam champion and the highest-paid female athlete Maria
Sharapova had announced that she tested positive for a drug called meldonium,
at the Australian Open earlier in January 2016.

i. Prime Minister Narendra
Modi will inaugurate the World Sufi Forum in New Delhi, where more than 200
Indian and international delegates, including Sufi Shuyukh, spiritual leaders,
scholars, academicians and masters of Sufism, are participating.

ii. The 4 day event is being
organised by All India Ulama and Mashaikh Board (AIUMB), the apex body of Sufi
Dargahs in India.

iii. The meeting is expected
to debate on how Sufi teaching can prevent global terrorism.

iv. The conclave will also
debate on how to guide the Muslim community away from sectarian division.

v. The meeting is expected to
debate on how Sufi teaching can prevent global terrorism.

214. India
has signed $35 million loan agreement with The World Bank for MP project

i. The Government of India has
signed a loan agreement with the World Bank for Neeranchal National Watershed
Project in Madhya Pradesh.

ii. The loan has been
sanctioned by the World Bank’s concessionary lending arm International
Development Association (IDA).

iii. The project to be
implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development over a six-year period
(2016-21) will support the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayi Yojana in hydrology
and water management, agricultural production systems, capacity building and
monitoring and evaluation.

iv. The Neeranchal project was
approved by the cabinet in October last year with a total budget outlay of
Rs.2142 crore with the Government share of Rs.1071 crore and the rest 50% by
the World Bank.

v. The project size is 50
million dollars out of which 35 million dollar will be provided by World Bank
and the remaining amount will be funded out of State Budget. The objective of
the project is to improve access and quality of public services in the state
through implementation of the Public Service Delivery Guarantee Act, 2010. The
duration of the project is 5 years

215. Arun
Jaitley to inaugurate National Community Radio Sammelan in New Delhi

i. Information and
Broadcasting Minister ArunJaitley will inaugurate the 6th National Community
Radio Sammelan in New Delhi.

ii. The theme of the
conference is, ‘Community Radio in India: Towards Diversity and
Sustainability’.

iii. The conference will bring
together Community Radio Operators, policy makers, Ministries, Departments,
International bodies like UNICEF and UNESCO and other stakeholders for exchange
of ideas and cross learning.

iv. The Information and
Broadcasting Ministry has been organising the National Community Radio Sammelan
annually since 2011.

v. The United Nations Children's
Emergency Fund is a United Nations program headquartered in New York City that
provides long-term humanitarian and developmental assistance to children and
mothers in developing countries.

216. Indian
Railways ties up with ISRO for route surveys

i. The Indian Railway Ministry
has announced that it has signed an agreement with the Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO).

ii. The agreement will
leverage the space technology for providing the passenger information in all
trains.

iii. With the help of this tie
up Railways will assets and help the new route alignments.

iv. The Memorandum of
Understanding has been signed on Thursday with the objective of developing
applications in the field of remote sensing and graphic information system to
provide information such as train stoppages, real-time train tracking, survey
of new rail route alignments in hilly and difficult terrain.

v. At present during disaster,
Indian Railways uses space technology to provide connectivity to passenger
reservation counters, unreserved ticketing system in remote areas, and
emergency communication using satellite phones.

217.
Denmark firm to set up pumps manufacturing unit near Hyderabad

i. Desmi Technology a leading
international manufacturer of pumps and pump solutions plans to set up a plant
on the outskirts of Hyderabad shortly.

ii. A high-level delegation
from Denmark representing Desmi Technology headed by its Chief Executive
Officer Henrik Knudsen and Lars Boldt Rasmussen called on the Telangana
Industries Minister Jupally Krishna Rao in the Secretariat on Thursday and
conveyed its interest to start a plant.

iii. Along with the Desmi
Technology Country head Murthy, the delegation told the Minister that they were
planning to set up Indian operations under the Make in India programme.

iv. Desmi is a leading
international manufacturer of pumps and pump solutions. This product is very
well known globally and in Indian market especially in Marine i.e. Shipyards
for private ships, Indian Navy and Coast Guard vessels.

v. Their main line of activity
includes platform, anchor handling, multipurpose and emergency response vessels
equipment.

218. 5600
wilful defaulters owe banks Rs 60K Crore

i. According to the data from
credit information bureau CIBIL, more than 5,600 borrowers, who owe banks close
to Rs 60,000 crore, have been declared wilful defaulters by lenders as on
December 31.

ii. These instances of wilful
default are those where banks have filed suits.

iii. The country’s largest
lender State Bank of India (SBI) is owed Rs 12,091 crore, followed by another
state-run lender Punjab National Bank (PNB) which has receivables of Rs 9,445
crore lent to 698 borrowers.

i. Royal Challengers Bangalore
(RCB) has confirmed to the BCCI that Russell Adams has been designated as
points man for all further correspondence.

ii. The decision has been
taken when Mr. Vijay Mallya has resigned as the director of the Royal
Challengers Sports Private Limited (RCSPL) on Thursday. But he will hold the
post of chief mentor.

iii. Royal Challengers
Bangalore (RCB) has confirmed that the founding promoter of the Bengaluru
franchise of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

iv. RCSPL, the company that
runs the daily affairs of the RCB team. Mallya has been representing the UB Group
as Chairman from 2008 by a bid for the Bangalore team at $ 111.6 million for
ten years (2008-2017).

v. RCSPL is a subsidiary of
United Spirits which is controlled by Diageo.

220. TCS
named official tech partner for London Marathon

i. Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS), India’s leading IT services provider, announced a three year partnership
with the Virgin Money London Marathon to enhance the digital experience
delivered to marathon participants.

ii. Under the terms of the
partnership, TCS will become the race’s Official Technology Partner for the
2016, 2017 and 2018 events.

iii. First established in
1981, and part of the World Marathon Majors, the Virgin Money London Marathon
is considered one of the world’s foremost marathons.

iv. A record total of 247,069
people entered the ballot for the 2016 race.

v. TCS already partners with
seven of the world’s leading races, including title sponsorships of the TCS
Amsterdam Marathon, TCS New York City marathon, and TCS World 10k Bengaluru.
The agreement is the latest example of TCS’ commitment to using digital
technology to foster health and wellbeing.

221. Ashley
Judd appointed U.N. Goodwill Ambassador

i. The United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA), the lead UN agency for delivery of a world where every
pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s
potential is fulfilled, today appointed actor and activist Ashley Judd as its
Goodwill Ambassador.

ii. UNFA Executive Director,
Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin announcing the appointment, Ms. Judd told journalists
that that it was an “honour” to be appointed as UNFPA’s Goodwill Ambassador and
to advocate for women’s rights.

iii. Ashley Judd is an
American actress and political activist. She grew up in a family of successful
performing artists as the daughter of country music singer Naomi Judd and the
sister of Wynonna Judd.

iv. Ashley Judd was born in
Granada Hills, California. She is the daughter of Naomi Judd, a country music
singer and motivational speaker, and Michael Charles Ciminella, a marketing
analyst for the horseracing industry While she is best known for an ongoing
acting career spanning more than two decades.

v. She has increasingly become
involved in global humanitarian efforts and political activism.

i. Surat is the cleanest
railway station in the country, followed by Rajkot and Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh),
according to an Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) survey
released.

ii. However, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s constituency Varanasi's railway station ranked poorly in terms
of cleanliness as it stood at 65, among the 75 A-1 railway stations (those
earning revenue more than Rs. 50 crore) surveyed.

iii. The survey, conducted
based on feedback from around 1.34 lakh passengers, is a part of Mr. Modi’s pet
project ‘Swacch Bharat Abhiyaan’.

iv. The station at Bilaspur in
Chhattisgarh was third among the 75 A1-category railway stations followed by
Solapur and Mumbai Central in Maharashtra, Chandigarh, Bhubaneshwar (Odisha)
and Vadodara (Gujarat),as per the preliminary report of the survey, which was
released by Railway Minister Suresh Prabu.

ii. The new company has been
set up with a capital of Rs 100 crore and is set a target to produce 1,500
units of ATMs per month at the end of calendar year 2016.

iii. The new entity is
expected to commence production in June 2016.

iv. Hitachi has deployed over
5,000 units of ATM in India by 2015 and at present, there are about two lakh
ATMs and CDs (Cash Dispensing ATMs) operating in the country.

v. Hitachi Terminal Solutions
India will allow Hitachi-Omron Terminal Solutions to promptly accommodate the
needs of the market, strengthen cost competitiveness, shorten the production
lead time from order entry to shipment and expand the business of cash recycling
ATMs. Hitachi-Omron Terminal Solutions had entered Indian market on a
full-scale basis in 2010 through sales of the cash recycling ATMs.

224. Amar
Abrol appointed as the new CEO of Air Asia India

i. Air Asia India has made an
announcement on Thursday that Mr. Amar Abrol will be the new CEO of the company
with the effect from April 1, 2016.

ii. He will succeed Mittu
Chandilya. Chandilya’s contract with the airline will ends on March 31, 2016.

iii. Mr. Abrol born and raised
in India and graduated from Delhi University. He is a chartered accountant by
profession. Prior to this appointment Mr. Amar Abrol was working as the CEO of
Tune Money. Tune Money is a start-up company that delivers low-cost financial
products in South-East Asia.

iv. The airline has also
announced the appointment of Mr. Ankur Khanna as the chief financial officer
(CFO) and Kiran Jain as head of commercial operations.

v. Mr. Ankur Khanna joins from
Air France/KLM, where he most recently held the position of Regional Finance
Head for the Middle East/Gulf region based in Dubai. And Kiran Jain has over 25
years of aviation related experience covering airports, airlines and duty free
and most recently headed the Airport Marketing and Route Development function
at Delhi International Airport.

225.
Freecharge allows payments via chat in 5 seconds

i. Mobile wallet and digital
payments player FreeCharge has announced the launch of its ‘Çhat and Pay‘
feature. The company said this feature enables social payments between users
and merchants.

ii. The chat-based payments
interface will let merchants accept payments using the FreeCharge app in under
a minute of registration,merchants will also be able to upgrade their payment
limit of Rs. 1,00,000 with necessary KYC verification.

iii. FreeCharge is looking to
bring on board neighbourhood small shopkeepers, Taxi services and merchants
from the unorganised sector using the service, which brings a buyer – seller
chat interface for merchants.

iv. To accept payments,
merchants must register their bank account number, geo-location and choose a
custom identifier, called a paytag to allow customers to identify their service
area through their FreeCharge app.

v. Merchants can start
accepting digital payments in less than a minute after registering on the
FreeCharge app, and the chat-based payment feature has a five second
transaction time, the company said.

226. Ex
Wipro CFO Suresh Senapaty Has Appointed As The New Chairman Of Honeywell
Automation

i. Suresh Senapaty, The ex
Wipro CFO has been appointed as the new Chairman by Honeywell Automation India
Ltd (HAIL) on Thursday.

ii. He has been appointed as
an Additional Director (Non-Executive, Independent) and as Chairman of its
Board of Directors.

iii. He will be responsible
for contributing to HAIL’s overall strategy and to provide counsel on corporate
governance, business, and financial matters.

iv. Mr. L.Rao has been
succeeded by Mr. Suresh Senapaty. He has been serving as the Chairman of the
Board of Directors from August 2014 to February 2016 and as the member of Board
of Directors of HAIL from 2002 to 2014.

i. Actor Larry Drake, known
for playing Benny on TV show "L.A. Law", has died. He was 66.

ii. The actor played Benny
Stulwicz, a mentally challenged law clerk, from 1987 until the TV show's end in
1994.

The memorable role earned
Drake two Emmy Awards, in 1988 and 1989, and a nomination in 1990.

iii. He reprised the role for
the reunion film, "L.A. Law: The Movie", which aired in 2002.

iv. Drake, who was born in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, was also a series regular on the 1998 sci-fi TV show
"Prey" and appeared in several films, including "Darkman"
(1990) - as a ruthless villain - and its sequel; as a murderous doctor in
"Dr. Giggles" (1992); "Bean" (1997); and "American Pie
2" (2001).

228. The Government Of India Has Slashed
The Interest Rates On Provident Fund , Kisan Vikas Patra And On Small Saving
Schemes

i. The government on Friday
slashed interest rates on small-savings schemes, including the Public Provident
Fund and Kisan Vikas Patra.

ii. The decision is aimed at
aligning these administered interest rates closer to the market rates. The new
rates will come into effect on April 1 and will be valid till June 30.

iii. After the decision taken
last month to revise the interest rates on small savings every quarter, the
rate under the Public Provident Fund scheme will be cut to 8.1 per cent for the
period from April 1 to June 30 from 8.7 per cent, said a Finance Ministry
order.

iv. While the interest rate on
the KVP will be cut to 7.8 per cent from 8.7 per cent, that on post office
savings is retained at 4 per cent. The rates on term deposits
of duration varying from one to five years have been cut.

v. The five-year National
Savings Certificates will earn interest at the rate of 8.1 per cent as against
8.5 per cent now. A five-year Monthly Income Account will fetch 7.8 per cent as
opposed to 8.4 per cent now. The girl-child saving scheme, Sukanya Samriddhi
Account, will have an interest rate of 8.6 per cent as against 9.2 per cent.
The senior citizen savings scheme of five years will earn 8.6 per cent compared
with 9.3 per cent. The rates on the post office term deposits are being cut
from 8.4 per cent to 7.1 per cent for one-year time deposits, 7.2 per cent for
two-year time deposits and 7.4 per cent for three-year time deposits.

i. Prime Minister Narendra
Modi inaugurate three-day 'Krishi Unnati Mela' providing information on new
farm schemes and technologies that will help farmers double their incomes
within the next few years.

iii. In this fair live
demonstration of agriculture and horticultural crops, animal husbandry,
innovative technologies and farm mechanisation in big plots.

iv. Both public and private
companies will display their farm inputs and technologies in over 500 stalls.

v. The plan additionally calls
for bringing ministries, offices, organizations, research and financial
institutions occupied with creation and recycling of water under one platform
so that an exhaustive and holistic outlook of the whole water cycle is
considered.

i. Supreme Court allowed now
use of pictures of Chief Ministers, Governors and Cabinet ministers in the
government's media advertisements.

ii. The SC had earlier ruled
that the advertisements could only have pictures of the President, Prime
Minister and the Chief Justice of India.

iii. The earlier order was
aimed at removing the association between government policy and politicians.

iv. Chief Ministers and
Ministers both at Centre and states had become "nameless and
faceless" in government advertisements after the apex court had in May
last year held that only photos of three functionaries-President, Prime
Minister and Chief Justice--would be published in advertisements.

v. The Centre in its petition
argued that it is for the government to decide whose photographs should be
published and what the content of advertisements should be.

i. Union Minister of Consumer
Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan on 17 March 2016
launched the Online Depot System in New Delhi to automate all the operations of
Food Corporation of India (FCI) depots.

ii. The key objective of the
Depot Online System is to align with Digital India vision for transformation of
food distribution supply chain in India.

iii. The system, which
efficiently captures data online on a real time basis, will bring total
transparency in the working of FCI.

iv. Besides it will also help
in better monitoring and supervision to reduce leakages and losses.

v. The Depot Online System
will be rolled out in all 554 FCI-owned godowns by July 2016.

232. Indian
Overseas Bank Has Become The 1st Bank To Sell Indian Gold Coins

i. Indian Overseas Bank (IOB)
has become the first bank to commence the sale of Indian Gold Coin (IGC) in the
domestic market.

ii. It has tied up with Metals
and Minerals Trading Corporation of India (MMTC) for the sale of IGC of 24
carat purity.

iii. The Indian Gold Coin has
the national emblem "the Ashok Chakra" engraved on one side and the
face of Mahatma Gandhi on the other side.

iv. The coin also carries
advanced anti-counterfeit features and comes in tamper proof packaging. It's
very safe and easily recyclable.

v. The current denominations
available in the coins are 5, 10 and 20 gm. The Indian Gold Coin is the first
ever national gold offering by the Center. This was launched by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on November 5, 2015. The IGC in Delhi was launched in the
presence of Alok Pande, Director in the Department of Financial Services,
Finance Ministry, and Anand Trivedi, Director (PMS), MMTC, besides other senior
officials.

233. India
And Bangladesh Enter New Era Of Bilateral Petroleum Trade

i. India and Bangladesh
entered into a new era of petroleum trade with a special goodwill train loaded
with High Speed Diesel rolling down from India to Bangladesh.

ii. The 42 wagon rail rake is
loaded with around 2500 MT High Speed Diesel. It started off from Siliguri
station to Parbatipur station over 516 kms.

iii. It is a symbolic gesture
of friendship and cooperation that exists between India and BangladeshIndia and
Bangladesh. This is the first major petroleum consignment from India.

iv. It is a part of the
Sale-Purchase Agreement signed between NRL and Bangladesh Petroleum
Corporation(BPC)

v. The agreement also includes
joint initiative for construction of a 135 km long pipeline, with a capacity of
1 million Metric Ton per annum(MMTPA) from Siliguri to Parbatipur. Presently
Bangladesh gets its imports from Chittagong port and the new agreement is cost
effective for Bangladesh. The expansion of NRL refinery from 3 MMTPA to 9MMTPA
will leave India enough stock to supply Bangladesh

234. Turkey
and EU reach landmark deal on refugees

i. Turkey and the EU have
reached a controversial deal European leaders hope will stop the flow of
refugees to the continent in return for political and financial concessions for
Ankara.

ii. Turkish Prime Minister
Ahmet Davutoglu and EU President Donald Tusk confirmed the agreement, which
will come into force on Sunday, at a press conference in Brussels after three
rounds of talks.

iii. The accord aims to close
the main route by which a million people poured across the Aegean Sea to Greece
in the last year before marching north to Germany and Sweden.

iv. Leaders of the bloc had
agreed on Thursday on a common plan under which Turkey would be given financial
and political concessions in return for taking back all refugees who reached
Greek islands off its coast.

v. Under the agreement, Ankara
would take back all refugees and others, including Syrians, who cross to Greece
illegally across the sea. In return, the EU would take in thousands of Syrian
refugees directly from Turkey and reward it with more money, early visa-free
travel and faster progress in EU membership talks.

i. India and Australia ink
pact to avoid double social security contribution Under this agreement,
employees of India deputed to Australia and vice versa will not have to make double
social security contribution.

ii. Under this agreement
Australia has become the 14th country with which India has a social security
agreement in force.

v. The objective of the
project is to improve access and quality of public services in the state.

236. Russia
gets its own Rating Firm – ACRA

i. Vladimir Putin’s homegrown
credit-ratings firm is up and running and foreign competitors are already
feeling the heat.

ii. Moody’s last week announced
it would shutter its joint venture in Moscow of 12 years and Fitch said it will
probably stop issuing local ratings on Russian companies, the same day ACRA,
which stands for Analytical Credit Rating Agency, applied for a license to
operate in Russia.

iii. In the past three weeks,
Moody’s Investors Service Inc. and Fitch Ratings Ltd. have said they plan to
stop issuing local ratings rather than agree to having their Moscow branches
regulated by the Russian government at the cost of breaking international
sanctions.

iv. Russia is squeezing the
business of foreign-ratings assessors since downgrades it condemned as
politically motivated last year pushed the sovereign below investment grade for
the first time in more than a decade.

v. The Bank of Russia announced
plans to start a company immune to “geopolitical risks” in July after S&P
and Moody’s cut Russia’s rating to junk amid a slump in oil prices and
sanctions imposed over Ukraine. ACRA’s board is headed by an American, Karl
Johansson, who advised the Russian government while at Ernst & Young LLP in
Moscow. Ekaterina Trofimova, a former banking analyst for Russia and former
Soviet states at S&P, will run the new venture.

237. Tata
Steel expects Rs 20,000 cr investment in Gopalpur SEZ

i. Tata Steel is in discussion
with foreign companies for investments up to Rs 20,000 crore in heavy
industries over the next five years at its Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project
at Gopalpur in Odisha.

ii. Tata Steel is the anchor
tenant for the multi-product 2,970-acre SEZ at Gopalpur in Odisha.

iii. The UK-based Midget
Corporations is setting up an assembly plant for "unmanned aerial vehicle
targets" which are used by army for firing practices.

iv. Singapore consultant
Subrana Jurong has completed the SEZ's masterplan with all land cleared for
leasing within the 30 square km boundary.

v. Tata Steel SEZ will invest
between Rs 2,000 and Rs 2,500 crore by 2020 in the Gopalpur SEZ, for which a
Tata Power power plant proposal is also on the drawing board. The company is
also discussing a possible investment in expansion of Gopalpur port, about five
kms away from the zone.

238. Pfizer
Appoints S. Sridhar As New MD For 5 Years

i. Pfizer, the pharmaceutical
major has announced the appointed of Mr. S Sridhar as its new Managing Director
(MD) with immediate effect for a period of five years.

ii. The announcement came at
the time of BSE filings and applied with the immediate effect from 18th March,
2016.

iii. Mr. S. Sridhar has been
working with Pfizer from past 10 years. He joined the company in the year 2003
as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the company and later in the year 2013 he
was appointed as the Executive Director on the Board.

iv. Prior to this these
appointment with Pfizer, Mr. S. Sridhar has worked with Diageo India Pvt Ltd as
the Finance Director.

v. Pfizer Inc. is an American
global pharmaceutical corporation. It is among the world's largest
pharmaceutical companies. Pfizer develops and produces medicines and vaccines
for a wide range of medical disciplines, including immunology, oncology,
cardiology, endocrinology, and neurology.

239. Sudhir
Raheja Has Given Extra Charge As AAI Chairman

i. The Airport Authority Of
India (AAI) has given the additional charge of Chairman to Mr. Sudhir
Raheja.

ii. This is the 2nd time when
Mr. Raheja has been entitled with the task of heading the national airport
company.

iii. Raheja was given the
additional charge following the repatriation of the then acting Chairman Alok
Sinha to his parent cadre, Uttar Pradesh in August , 2014.

iv. Mr. Raheja's appointment
announced in a very sudden manner when Mr. R K Srivastava tenure has been
curtailed by the authorities. Srivastava, a 1984 batch Jharkhand-cadre IAS
officer, was removed from the post by the government, nearly 15 months after he
was brought at the helm for a five-year term. However, this is not for the
first time that an AAI Chairman has been shown the door. In January 2014, the
then UPA government had abruptly removed V P Agarwal.

v. The Airports Authority of
India (AAI) under the Ministry of Civil Aviation is responsible for creating,
upgrading, maintaining and managing civil aviation infrastructure in India.

240. Indian
Professor Appointed 56th President Of International Studies Association

i. An Indian Professor has
become the president of a scholarly group in the US dedicated to international
studies.

ii. Professor TV Paul took
over as the 56th president of International Studies Association (ISA), at its
annual convention at Atlanta, Georgia this week.

iii. In his address, which
among others was attended by former Canadian Prime Minister, Joe Clarke, Mr
Paul called on international relations scholars to explicitly deal with grand
strategies of peaceful change more effectively, especially in the context of
the rise of new powers such as China and India.

iv. Born in Kerala, Mr Paul in
his speech encouraged scholars with historical understanding to offer ideas for
policy makers about which strategy produced conflict and which strategy
generated unnecessary violence.

v. The James McGill Professor
of International Relations at McGill University, Montreal, Canada he is a
leading scholar of international security, nuclear proliferation, and South
Asia.

241. Tikka
Shatrujit Singh knighted with top French award

i. Tikka Shatrujit Singh,
chief representative in Asia for French multinational LVMH (Moet Hennessy-Louis
Vuitton) and advisor to the chairman of Louis Vuitton, has spearheaded the
development of Louis Vuitton’s business in India.

ii. Tikka Shatrujit Singh, the
royal scion of Kapurthala’s Ahluwalia dynasty, has been conferred with the
prestigious Knight of the Legion of Honour for his “extraordinary work in the
exchanging the French lifestyle and Indian culture with each other.”

iii. Singh is also known for
his endeavours to preserve the tangible and intangible heritage of Kapurthala,
which is a blend of Indo-French architectural styles.

242. Tenth
Asian Film Awards : Complete List of Winners

i. The 10th edition of Asian
Film Awards (AFA), which was held at the Venetian Theatre in Macau, China,
honoured diverse talents across Asian cinema.

ii. The prestigious awards
ceremony was graced by a spectacular gathering of celebrities and industry
professionals from different cities of Asia.

iii. Awards won by Assassin-
Assassin wins more than half of the 15 awards presented in the Asian film
awards :- Best Film: The Assassin, Best Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien for The
Assassin, Best Actress: Shu Qi for The Assassin, Best Supporting Actress: Zhou
Yun for The Assassin, Best Cinematography: Mark Lee Ping-bing for The Assassin,
Best Production Design: Hwarng Wern-ying for The Assassin, Best Original Music:
Lim Giong for The Assassin, Best Sound: Chu Shih-yi, Tu Duu-chih and Wu Shu-yao
for The Assassin.

iv. Others Awards presented-
Best Actor: Lee Byung-hun for The Inside Men, Best Newcomer: Jessie Li for Port
of Call, Best Supporting Actor: Tadanobu Asano for Journey to the Shore, Best
Screenplay: Jia Zhangke for Mountains May Depart, Best Editing: William Chang
Suk-ping, Chu Ka-yat, Liao Ching-sung, Wong Hoi, Philip Yung for Port of Call,
Best Visual Effects: Prasad Sutar for Bajirao Mastani, Best Costume Design: Lee
Ji-yeon and Shim Hyun-seob for The Throne.

243. 21st March :
World Forestry Day

i.
World Forestry Day or International Day of Forests is celebrated worldwide
every year on 21st of March.

ii.
The World Forestry Day was established in the year 1971 at the 23rd General
Assembly of European Confederation of Agriculture and later it was established
by a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly on November 28,
2012.

iii.
The International Day of Forests was observed for the first time on March 21,
2013.

iv.
The World Forestry Day is celebrated at the international level in order to
increase the public awareness among communities about the values, significance
and contributions of the forests to balance the life cycle on the earth.

v.
The theme of the 2016 International Day of Forests is “forests and water”. To
mark the Day a joint celebration of the International Day of Forests (21st of
March) and World Water Day, which is celebrated on 22nd of March every year
will be held on Monday, 21 March 2016 in the Economic and Social Council
Chamber.

244. Govt Allows 49% FDI In Insurance Under Automatic Route

i.
The government has relaxed FDI norms for the insurance sector by permitting
overseas companies to buy 49 percent stake in domestic insurers without prior
approval, which is another effort to bring more foreign players into India’s
vast insurance market.

ii.
Earlier, an overseas company was allowed to buy up to 26% stake in an
India-based insurance company. But, for up to 49 percent the investor had to
take prior approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

iii.
However in its latest notification the government said, the foreign investment
proposals up to 49% of the total paid up equity of the Indian insurance company
shall be allowed on the automatic route subject to verification by the
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India.

iv.
There are 52 insurance companies operating in India, of which 24 are in the
life insurance business and 28 in the general insurance.

v.
In order to deepen the re-insurance market, IRDAI permitted UK-based Lloyds to
set up business in India.

245. BHEL Commissions its 2nd 270 MW Thermal Unit In Punjab

i.
Within a month of successful commissioning of a 270 MW thermal generating unit
in the state, the state run BHEL ( Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited ) has
commissioned another 270 MW unit at Goindwal Sahib coal-fired power project in
Punjab.

ii.
The unit has been commissioned at the GVK Power and Infra Ltd in Tarn Taran
District near Amritsar.

iii.
The first unit of the project was earlier commissioned by the company in
February, 2016.

iv.
Thermal sets of 270 MW rating are an in-house improvisation of 210/250 MW sets
supplied earlier by BHEL which today form the backbone of the Indian power
sector and have been performing much above the national average as well as
international benchmarks.

v.
BHEL has so far contracted 35 sets of 270 MW rating, out of which 13 sets have
now been commissioned. Notably, all the operational sets of 210-270 MW class in
the state of Punjab have been supplied, erected and commissioned by BHEL. In
addition to thermal projects, BHEL has a significant presence in the state’s
hydro sector also, with 95% share in the hydro generating capacity of Punjab
State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL).

246. Hinduja brothers top Britain’s ‘Asian Rich List’

i.
India-born brothers G P Hinduja and S P Hinduja topped the 'Asian Rich List
2016' released here last night and the annual rankings showed that they had
added one billion pounds to their personal fortune in a year to be worth an
estimated 16.5 billion pounds.

ii.
The 'Asian Rich List' assesses the total wealth of Britain's top 101 richest
Asians and is compiled by UK-based publishing house Asian Media and
Market.

iii.
The Asian Rich List assesses the total wealth of Britain's top 101 richest
Asians and is compiled by UK-based publishing house Asian Media and Market.

iv.
Steel tycoon Lakshmi Niwas Mittal was ranked second in the list, released by
the Indian high commissioner to the UK Navtej Sarna. The fortune of Mittal,
however, has plummeted by 3.3 billion pounds to finish with 6.4 billion pounds.
Leading NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul is listed as 15th richest with
fortune worth 500 million pounds.

i.
The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon has appointed Red, the leader
of the “Angry Birds” mobile game characters as an envoy to inspire climate
action toward a sustainable and happier future for all.

ii.
Red's appointment as Honorary Ambassador for Green is the part of a UN campaign
launched in partnership with the globally renowned characters to make a direct
link between tackling climate change and people's happiness and well-being on
the occasion of the International Day of Happiness to be observed on Sunday, 20
March.

iii.
The U.N. chief told that the Angry Birds have entertained millions of people
around the world and now they are part of making the world a better
place.

iv.
He also said that there was no better way to mark the International Day of
Happiness than to have our animated ambassador raise awareness about the
importance of addressing climate change to create a safer more sustainable and
happier future for all.

v.
The campaign was in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment, the U.N.
Development Program and U.N. Foundation, asks people around the world to make
the Angry Birds happy by taking actions to combat climate change such as
recycling, taking public transportation and conserving water.

248. Cairn India Bags Five Awards At 'FICCI Excellence
Awards'

i.
Cairn India Ltd. has remained in the top deciles of safety performance amongst
peer group companies for the FICCI Safety Systems Excellence Award in
Manufacturing.

ii.
The awards, which are dedicated for best safety and occupation health systems
act as a motivation and a catalyst for adopting best safety practices and
systems in the manufacturing sector.

iii.
Cairn India considers safe transportation of its people and its products as an
integral part of responsible care.

iv.
Cairn India considers safe transportation of its people and its products as an
integral part of responsible care.

v.
Continuous efforts to improve road and transport safety are therefore part of
the company's overall objective to improve safety performance throughout its
business.

249. Cisco to invest $100 millions in India; to train over
250,000 students

i.
American multinational technology company Cisco Systems Inc will invest over
$100 million over the next 18 to 24 months to support the country's ambitious
plan to connect thousands of its villages to the internet and create
jobs.

ii.
The series of investments will include $40 million that will be used to fund
early-stage and growth-stage companies in the country, and train around 250,000
students by 2020.

iii.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a series of initiatives under
the 'Digital India', 'Skill India,' and 'Startup India' schemes to connect
millions of Indians to the Internet, create more tech jobs and move more
services online.

iv.
According to Dinesh Malkani, president at Cisco India and SAARC company has
expertise in areas such as security, cloud, and the Internet of Things which it
can lend to emerging companies. "There is a lot of scope for development
in IP driven technology software companies in India," he said.

v.
The $143-billion firm has over 10,000 people in India. It is also setting up a
manufacturing base in Pune to locally make products to "support the
Digital India vision" and aims to eventually make it an

250. Mumbai's Wilson College adopts railway station for
cleanliness

i.
One of Mumbai oldest colleges, the Wilson College has adopted the Charni Road
station here for cleanliness and upkeep as part of the Swachch Bharat Abhiyan.

ii.
Governor and Chancellor of the University CH Vidyasagar Rao congratulated the
college for its excellent initiative, which he said will help the cause of
cleanliness.

iii.
A group of Wilson College students led by executive co-ordinator Dr Kamal
Jadhav met the Governor at Raj Bhavan and briefed him about the decision and
the various initiatives taken by the students during the past few months to
keep the Charni Road station neat and clean.

iv.
Dr Jadhav told the Governor that the college took the decision in response to
the appeal made by the Governor to colleges and universities to adopt a railway
stations or any other public place nearest to the institution and to take care
of its cleanliness and upkeep.